Politicians need to see our 'Outrage'

Julie Harris, the acclaimed actress who played Emily Dickinson, dragged a director friend to the theater. This particular friend, despite his career, hated sitting through plays.\nBut on this occasion, the play was a stunning adaptation of a Dickens novel. When it was over, Harris's friend turned to her and said, "Can we see it again, Julie?"\nShe responded by telling him they could come back night after night.\nThat's how I felt when I left the Bloomington Playwrights Project's production of "Outrage." The play, which won the company's prestigious Reva Shiner award, was just what I needed.\nI have loved the theater all my life, but lately I've felt like Harris' friend. Not because the plays are bad, or because the stage has lost its appeal. Rather, I started looking at my watch when I went to the theater. I can't explain why, but I needed to be challenged.\nMeanwhile, we were running the longest, most boring race for president ever. A race devoid of ideas, full of silly non-issues that resulted in an electorate's mandate for new candidates has left me similarly unchallenged.\nAnd along comes "Outrage."\nAlthough it was too complicated to explain here, I'll just say this: the play took place on a university campus, in Renaissance Italy, in Ancient Greece, all through the eyes of Bertolt Brecht. It featured Socrates, Aristotle and Galileo. Most importantly, it dealt boldly with big ideas and important questions of morality. On top of that, it was a scary, funny, wonderful play.\nAnd no, they're not paying me to say any of that.\nOf course, the play broke lots of rules. It was intelligent, fast-paced and "heavy." All of the things that successful plays aren't supposed to be.\nIf only Al Gore's advisors had seen it.\nIf only we could have flown George W. Bush down for a matinee. \nMeanwhile, the president is trying to sell his ridiculous tax cut, and Bill Clinton is being investigated again and again and again. It seems that our leaders (and I use that word freely) have decided that we are very stupid.\n"Outrage" assumed its audience could at least muster some interest in challenging thoughts, they could follow a good story and in the end we could put it all together and ask some intelligent questions.\nMeanwhile, Al Gore tried to win the presidency by repeatedly saying the word "lockbox."\nCome on, guys. Give Americans some credit. We're the same people who have to balance our checkbooks, fill out income tax forms and keep up with the latest in digital technology so we can watch "The Matrix" on our DVD players. It's not as if our brains turn off when you start talking.\nOr maybe they do.\nAfter all, it is hard to listen to Dubya drone on about a tax cut for real people when we know his program will distribute more than 45 percent of the benefits to the wealthiest one percent of the country. At least when the brain is on.\nAnd can we really afford to think about another sensationalized Clinton investigation? Only if we enjoy listening to minute by minute spin from Indiana's own Rep. Dan Burton.\nPoliticians have performed a pretty clever lobotomy. It's the same dynamic at work in the relationship between television and the theater. TV has fried our brains to the point that we've stopped demanding great theater. \nWashington's salacious scandal-mongering and epidemic underestimation of America has fried our brains to the point that we've stopped demanding intelligent discourse on issues that matter -- issues such as education, health care and Social Security.\nThe problem is that it's a lot harder to turn off Dan Burton, or change his channel.\nMeanwhile, "Outrage" closed its doors last night. Too bad. George and Al will have to wait for the tour.